Pianotech

  • 1.  Frederick Ehrbar

    Posted 07-30-2021 10:02
    Ran into this yesterday.  Badly cracked pinblock.  Several soundboard cracks.  It seems to have what I would describe as a "bridge cap" instead of the usual pressure bars or agraffes (some cracks).   s/n OPG420?  (I think)   Action reasonably functional, though needs regulation.  Hammers didn't look too bad.  Customer would like to sell it so he can afford a serviceable instrument.  Anyone interested in a project?

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    Timothy Edwards
    Beckley WV
    740-517-7636
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  • 2.  RE: Frederick Ehrbar

    Posted 07-30-2021 10:03
    Sorry.  Not sure why they posted "sideways".

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    Timothy Edwards
    Beckley WV
    740-517-7636
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  • 3.  RE: Frederick Ehrbar

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 07-30-2021 11:23
    I ran across one of these from late 1870's, almost identical, at a high school in 2018. Posted pics and asked for feedback here. Received a lot of information and interesting opinions about what it was, what to do with it, etc. Here is that thread...

    https://my.ptg.org/communities/community-home/digestviewer/viewthread?MessageKey=69728c99-34c0-47e6-963a-69b82f73e308&CommunityKey=6265a40b-9fd2-4152-a628-bd7c7d770cbf&tab=digestviewer#bm69728c99-34c0-47e6-963a-69b82f73e308 

    The school, of course, had NO money to invest in this thing. It had been carelessly donated to the school, in this condition, and the best thing they could do with it is use it as a table. Sad. Being a Viennese action piano, even in good condition the school really had no use for it. One day I showed up to tune the other four pianos in the band room and it was gone. 

    Yeah, even though it was ancient technology, and would never compare to a modern piano, it was gorgeous. Had the right person been found to adapt it, and the right person found to restore it, it would have been an interesting piece.

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    Geoff Sykes, RPT
    Los Angeles CA
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  • 4.  RE: Frederick Ehrbar

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 07-30-2021 13:09
    I appreciate Geoff's post, and would like to add that in their own way, as musical instruments, Viennese pianos from their later period, like this one, stand on their own merits as fine musical representatives, and should not be compared to today's pianos as they are of a different and entirely legitimate way of making music.   They may be universally disregarded and still tell an important story of both piano performance and piano design.


    Ehrbar was also no little maker in the corner, but a formidable build worth honoring.   So we try to do this by collecting, at Period Piano Collection.
     www.periodpiano.org.   When possible a piano like this might be restored and used for music performance from and around the 1860s-1870s, along with our Boseys, Schweighofer, etc.

    Regards,

    Bill

    Bill Shull, RPT, M.Mus.
    www.shullpiano.com
    www.periodpiano.org
    909 796-4226

    Sent from my iPhone